The Poll: Bank regulation

Leave it to John Kanas to say what everyone else in the industry is thinking.

Kanas, who built tiny North Fork Bank into a powerhouse that was bought by Capital One for $14.6 and is now leading the turnaround of BankUnited, told the Long Island Business Development Council this week that Congress overreacted so much to the Great Recession that all the regulations created by Dodd Frank and the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau are hurting the economy.

He was clear to say that it wasn’t the regulators he had a problem with – they’re only doing their job, after all – but the lawmakers who created the new rules are the ones to blame.

“In the near future, it will get considerably worse,” Kanas told the crowd of 100 at the event. “Some 200 rules are not yet in place.”

With that in mind, are banks being too regulated as Kanas suggests or is the regulation necessary to avoid a second financial crisis?

Are banks being too overregulated?

No, banks need to be reined in. (45%, 62 Votes)

Yes, Congress and regulators have overreacted to the recession. (30%, 42 Votes)

Small banks are suffering from the misdeeds of big banks. (25%, 35 Votes)